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Guide How To Write Law Term Paper

This document provides guidance on choosing a topic and conducting research for a law term paper. It recommends that students select a topic that is narrowly focused within the course subject area and not too broad or overly researched. Example topics are given from four legal areas: administrative law, criminal law, environmental law, and employment/labor law. Unsuitable topics are also identified that should be avoided. The document concludes by distinguishing between theoretical research, which only investigates a topic, and reform-oriented research, which evaluates existing laws and proposes alternatives.

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159 views

Guide How To Write Law Term Paper

This document provides guidance on choosing a topic and conducting research for a law term paper. It recommends that students select a topic that is narrowly focused within the course subject area and not too broad or overly researched. Example topics are given from four legal areas: administrative law, criminal law, environmental law, and employment/labor law. Unsuitable topics are also identified that should be avoided. The document concludes by distinguishing between theoretical research, which only investigates a topic, and reform-oriented research, which evaluates existing laws and proposes alternatives.

Uploaded by

blueberry
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Guide on How to Write a Law Term

Paper Properly
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Writing Guide9

Conducting legal research and writing a law term paper is inevitable


for anyone taking a law-related course, be it the Essentials of
Employment Law, Introduction to Contract Law, or Criminal Law.
Professors are aware that being a legal professional requires long
nights spent leafing through the old cases and analyzing court
decisions. Therefore, they normally assign numerous pieces of
research and term papers to their students to prepare them for what
is waiting them as lawyers, attorneys, judges in the future. The task
may seem exigeant at first. Nevertheless, the more one invests in
the research process, the easier it gets. As it always is in the legal
field, being meticulous ensures the success.

Since a term paper is a major assignment, students are normally


required to write no more than two of those throughout the term.
They are most likely to write several minor research papers before
being assigned a term paper in Law. It means a person is more or
less familiar with the legal research process by the time he/she is to
write a term paper. However, it is still a time-consuming and
challenging process that should be approached step-by-step. So
follow this law term paper writing guide!

Choosing a Topic for a Law Term Paper


Since professors want a term paper to represent how well students
manges to master the course/the part of the course, they usually
give the students a list of topics to choose from. These topics are
related to the course materials. In such cases, choosing a topic is
neither complicated nor particularly exciting. One should simply
decide which of the course materials he/she has the most to write
about.

However, sometimes, professors would like to see whether students


are able of choosing an appropriate topic by themselves. While
some believe that they are given the green light, in reality, it is an
additional way for a professor to check students’ knowledge. Choice
of the topic shows understanding of the course and legal system in
general. There are several rules to be followed when choosing an
appropriate topic for a law term paper.

 Most importantly, it must fall within the same area of the


subject as the course. If one takes a Consumer Protection
course, writing about the legal issues associated with
cyberbullying is a no go;
 Besides, the chosen topic should not be overly broad: as
pressing as the problem of sexual assault is, one’s topic should
not be Sexual Assault;
 It is better to narrow the focus and write about a specific
aspect of the problem, for instance, Sexual Assault on Campus;
 Finally, one should make sure that his/her chosen topic is
neither under-researched nor over-researched.

If the topic is overly specific or explores a newly arisen problem, the


research process can get excruciating. At the same time, although
topics akin to marijuana legalization, gun control, and statutory rape
are fascinating to write about, the amount of academic and non-
academic literature on them is enormous. It will be difficult for a
student to say something original. Be attentive with a topic choice!
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Good Topics for Your Term Paper from 4 Legal Areas


Administrative Law:

 The Prisoners’ Right to Vote in the United States: Pro et Contra;


 The Effects of the USA Freedom Act;
 The Functions of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Criminal Law:

 Mandatory Sentencing in the United States: Pro et Contra;


 Mens Rea in Sexual Assault;
 Dissociative Identity Disorder Used in Insanity Defence.

Environmental Law:

 The Future of the Tri-State Water Dispute: Possible Outcomes;


 X Legal Problems of America’s First Energy Plan;
 The Concept of Intergenerational Equity.

Employment & Labor Law:

 The Legal Procedure of Bereavement Leave in the United


States;
 X Pre-Hire Drug Tests in Law or Not?
 The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification in the New
York State.

Unsuitable Topics to Avoid in Your Term Paper


 Workplace Discrimination. The topic is too broad. It is better to
choose one type of discrimination, for instance, because of
religion and belief.
 People of the State of California v. Orenthal James Simpson.
The O. J. Simpson’s case is over-researched. Besides, after the
first season of American Crime Story was aired, the number of
students’ papers about the infamous case increased even
further. Some professors were forced to include it into the list
of taboo topics because they grew tired of reading the same
material over and over again.
 Active Euthanasia in the United States. Taking into account that
it is not legal in the United States, it will hardly be possible to
write a law term paper on euthanasia. Assisted suicide is
probably a better option.
 The Ethics of ‘Torture Lite.’ It is rather a topic for an ethics or
philosophy paper than for a law one.

Identifying the Research Type of Your Law Term


Paper
The types of legal research are countless and include, among others,
such approaches as:

 Deductive vs. inductive,


 Fundamental vs. applied,
 Qualitative vs. quantitative.

However, since writing a term paper is a part of the educational


process, professors normally expect their students to stick to the so-
called ‘educational research.’ It is the same as in any other course
and implies gathering the information on the topic and analyzing it.
Nevertheless, one should at least decide whether his/her term paper
is a theoretical or a reform-oriented one. The former is supposed to
investigate the chosen topic in detail without proposing any
solutions. In contrast, reform-oriented research is aimed at
evaluating the existing legislative rules/procedures and suggesting
the alternatives that the writer finds more reasonable.

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